Basta Food!!!

I'll Kiss You For Cake and Ice Cream

2009-02-12T16:15:00.001+08:00

For lucky couples who wouldn't mind kissing in front of the cashier at Pepper Lunch, here's your chance to score Molten a la Modes on Valentine's Day.

I wouldn't mind doing this. :-)

May you be part of the first 100 couples.

Thou Shall Not Judge A Dessert by How It Looks Like: Flana Banana from Tapa King

2009-01-29T16:33:00.010+08:00

It is said that we first eat with our eyes, and this is the reason why preparation is important when it comes to food. This is why food has to have color or else they won't be appetizing. They have to be the right colors, though. Nobody wants blue food (well, except for me. I made blue kwek-kwek at home once... but that's another story).

Desserts have to look rich and inviting and positively mouthwatering. You rarely see a beige dessert. There's always something to give it life, something to make people wanna buy it and eat it just at the sight of it.

And then there's flana banana. It looks pretty much lifeless. Like bananas drowned in a tub of milk with a few cubes of leche flan thrown at it to try to save it. Just look:

Pathetic, ain't it? I first had this dessert a few months back when I was perusing a Tapa King menu. I ordered this because 1) It has leche flan. 2) It has saba bananas. I thought it was like the most perfect combination ever. The only thing lacking was sago, seriously.

And you know what, I'm glad I did (it's awesome!) but I was wrecked from that point onward because I became addicted to it! LOLz. It must be the milk, or the flan, or the bananas swishing around in that puddle of milk and ice, but it's just perfect! To quote P, who shared it with me this last time: "Sa'n ba gawa to, sa paradise?" (Where was this made? In paradise?).

A closer inspection looks more promising:

Or maybe not quite. HAHAHA... It's saba bananas the way I like it, leche flan the way I like it, and milk the way I like it. Put three things you like and you're bound to have a great time, folks! And like I said, if they add sago, I'll probably be in heaven already. Or that's overkill? Hmm... Should I write to the Tapa King folks about the sago suggestion?

Try it once and see if you like it. If not, then at least you tried it. If you like it, then what's also nice about this is you could make it at home. Win!

Available at Tapa King outlets everywhere for P68 (but around P75 if you have it delivered because there's a 10% service charge).

Gising-Gising

2009-01-27T15:21:00.008+08:00

According to the Yehey! Food Special, gising-gising is: a warm and spicy concoction combining coconut milk, chopped vegetables, and ground pork...

At least that's what the Gising-Gising from Recipes is.

This is the gising-gising that I love:
I know, I know. It doesn't look like much judging from the photos. But you can tell for one thing it doesn't have coconut milk in it.

While I now realize that the gising-gising I regularly get from the neighborhood carinderia (along Zapote St. in Sta. Cruz, Makati) is probably not the original version or might I even say correct version, I love it nonetheless. It was one of my staple foods back in my graveyard shift days, when my roommate would come home around lunch time equipped with a serving big enough for 4 people. At about 85php, we are absolutely loving this.

Believe it or not, this is actually pulutan food in that particular carinderia, along with the ubiquitous inihaw food. I love this version because it has lots of tofu (and P loves tofu to death) and lots of greens (as me and greens go way, way back in the lovin' vegetables category). As for meat content, it really doesn't have much, lest you count the quekiam and the chicharon liberally scattered all over. That place knows how to cook their veggies, too. The gising-gising always comes perfectly cooked, the greens still crunchy, the carrots never soggy, and the tofu even keeping its shape.

By the way, that is a mixing bowl over there. That's a lot of food for the 85php that it is. I often share this with P, but we always have a lot left over (good for 2 people to gorge on). Absolutely great with rice, but can be eaten without it too, for those watching their weight somewhat.

I'm sure the Recipes version is quite good, as attested by one of my friends, but I feel I'll still get back to this version time and again.

In fact, I think I'm getting one for dinner tonight! :-)

Testing the Waters

2009-01-27T15:12:00.003+08:00

Since I haven't posted in God knows how long, I shall simply post a picture of one food I really enjoy:

It's 1 bilao of California maki, a staple in Christmas and birthday parties in P's office. Gotta love that. I know they buy it somewhere in Manila, and for about P350 you get one entire bilao of goodies. :-) Beat that.

Leave... for a while

2008-11-06T16:22:00.001+08:00

Well, rest assured that Basta Food will be back with a vengeance once we all sort out this icky thing called WORK.

Yes, we still eat. It's just that we've all been too busy.

Watch out for new blogger J (another girl, yay!). She eats a lot too.

So hopefully you'll still be here when we get back from _eek_ working.

Support Your Team With Donuts!

2008-09-11T15:45:00.002+08:00

Hey fellas!

KK sent me an email once again, this time heralding the release of their UAAP-themed donuts:

I personally am no FEU Tamaraws fan, but I really think their KK donut looks best. :)

Grab them while they're hot!

A Chicken Bacolod Dud

2008-08-27T10:38:00.008+08:00

I grew up eating chicken inasal because there's a great inasal place where I lived as a kid, and my family literally went there every week. When I saw that Glorietta had a Chicken Bacolod outlet, I was all excited about trying the food there and perhaps introduce P to a real inasal experience, or something like that.

The dinner hour crowd

But bleeeeeeeh. I didn't like Chicken Bacolod at all. Sure it was full of people, but for me it was a disappointment. Seating was too cramped and they didn't accept credit cards. Okay, those I can live with. But the service pretty much sucked. I understand that it's the dinner hour and the place was probably understaffed, add to that the fact that it was cramped there, but we felt ignored. You know how it is when you ask for water or you ask for the bill (yes, the part when you're about to hand your money over to them) and they just pass you like you're not there or they look at you or they try to tell other waiters to take your table? Or when they somehow make you feel that pouring your drink or serving your food is such a chore. Yeah, something like that. Service was bad.

How about the food?

Believe me, I didn't want the Chicken Bacolod experience to be bad, but I was just really disappointed with it. Here's what P and I had:

Lipa Fresh Buko Juice - P60
Believe me when I say that the buko juice that Manong Magbubuko sells tastes much better.

Crabfat Rice - P65
P says it's quite good but a bit on the bitin side. Well, for a guy, that serving's quite small.

Pecho - P92
Initial reaction was: This is it? And it didn't taste like the inasal I remember so fondly! :-(

Sizzling Chicken Sisig - P165
It does taste like sisig but not quite. I'm undecided if I like this or not, but hey, we finished it.

I love to eat but it's quite rare that I find a place that I don't like. To quote my sister, "busog but not satisfied."

Should you want to try Chicken Bacolod yourselves, here's the link to pics of the menu:

Menu 1
Menu 2
Menu 3
Menu 4
Branches

Pacific Sun Pandan Iced Tea

2008-08-22T17:19:00.006+08:00

Pandan has the reputation of making everything taste better in a quaint little way. It's at the same time sweet, fragrant, grassy, and because it's used to make rice fragrant, it brings back fond memories of meals gone by.

I remember having some sort of pandan drink at one of my visits to Oody's and it was quite interesting. Now, if you go to any of your friendly convenience stores, you may also find a pandan-flavored drink that will tickle your fancy. It's from Pacific Sun and it's called Pandan Iced Tea.

I wouldn't vouch for it being tea, though I suppose it really is tea. The taste is one I love because it reminds me of my childhood where I go to the plaza and drink samalamig. When drunk ice cold, Pandan Iced Tea tastes EXACTLY like sago gulaman. I have this notion in my head that I'd take two or three bottles of Pandan Iced Tea, plop them in the freezer, hurry to the market to buy ready-made sago, and then pour all of it in a pitcher for me to enjoy. :-) I've tried semi-frozen Pandan Iced Tea, but haven't had the time to buy the sago yet. Or better yet, buy those chewy "pearls" and have a go with it. It'd be great on a Sunday afternoon, dontcha think?

Now going to the nutrition facts at the back of the bottle, we see that this particular drink has no fat and no sodium. I know a few people who would certainly welcome that. Carb content, however, is something that people may bristle over. We know of people who are hell bent on erasing carbohydrates from their diets forever.

But for the sake of enjoying this unique drink, forget about crazy diets for a while and just savor the goodness of the pandan leaf in every bottle.

Krispy Kreme Addicts, This is for YOU!!!

2008-08-20T17:17:00.004+08:00

I recently got this in the mail:

Hi Friend of Krispy Kreme!

We'd like to invite you to come on the opening of our 8th store - Krispy Kreme Mall Of Asia (factory & drive-thru store), beside SM Science Discovery Center. Opening day at a Krispy Kreme store is a fun event and we'd love to have you come by, join in the festivities and experience a Hot Original Glazed fresh off the line. Plus, here are more reasons why you should line up before the doors open on September 5, Friday at 10 a.m.;

You read it here first. ;-)

A Sick Girl's Breakfast

2008-08-13T10:00:00.004+08:00

I've been out of commission from this blog because of work, and I thought I will not be decommissioned because of sickness. This morning I woke up with an aching throat and the case of the sniffles. My workload is the only thing that pulled me out of bed today.

So I hauled myself to work and still felt under the weather. I thought to myself I needed all the vitamin C I could get. So after my customary cup of coffee, I went down to buy myself breakfast:

From 7-11 I got two bottles of Tampico Citrus Drink. I wish they sold the bigger bottles, because I simply can't get enough of this drink. Parts of my childhood were spent in the States, and we always had a gallons of Tampico on hand. The combination of orange, tangerine, and lemon juices never fails to soothe my throat.

That odd-looking piece of a sandwich I got from Starbucks, using the PHP100 gift certificate a friend gave me. It's a (according to the barista) TMB sandwich. TMB is short for tomato, mozzarella, and basil. Tomatoes have vitamin C, basil has vitamin C, and so I think I've reached my vitamin C quota for today. This sandwich appealed to me because my friend J used to make tomato-cheese-basil sandwiches and we used to gobble them up. This reminded me of my friend, plus I seriously have a love for basil. This sandwich is not typical Filipino fare, and will probably not appeal to a great number of Pinoys, but it is worth a try if only to expand your tasting horizons.

And that's what a sick girl had for breakfast. I hope you had great breakfasts too! :-)

Estero Fast Food

2008-08-05T22:09:00.013+08:00

I was in Binondo last week for a Sunday Walk street shoot. The usual modus operandi: walk, shoot and eat. Hungry as hell, I went to Estero for good food. It is located across Ongpin st. right beside the big canal eerrr! creek. The place is like a carinderia outside but they have an air conditioned room on 2nd &3rd floor.

The place is usually jam-packed especially on lunch time.

Mix Seafoods with Vegetables for (Small = Php 80, Medium = Php 120, Large = 160)

Crispy Frog Legs (Small = Php 100, Medium = Php 150, Large = Php 200)

Buttered Chicken (Small = Php 90, Medium = 135, Large = 180)

Shanghai Fried Rice

Estero Fast Food may look dirty and the smell is not that good but the quality of foods here are fantastic. Highly recommended for those who value their money without sacrificing their taste buds.

Wanna experience it? Treat me! Ha! Ha! Ha!

A KFC Breakfast

2008-07-30T09:10:00.005+08:00

I don't usually visit fastfood outlets at such an early time, but I was really hungry and the 2-block walk made it worse. I was weighing my options between the usual 7-11 or Ministop breakfast fare. I suddenly remembered that there was a KFC outlet near my building and so I headed to it before work.

I was actually gunning for a Go-Go meal because I wanted something filling. For some reason, I wanted vegetables for breakfast. I forgot that KFC now serves breakfast, meaning the regular menu won't be up until 11:00 AM. Bummer. Anyway, I had some options. I believe it was possible to order a bucket meal, but I deemed it too early. Besides, I wasn't that hungry.

The French toast on the menu made me curious, which seems to be the reason why I order certain items, and so I ordered the French Toast Breakfast Meal (P45 w/ drink). It was nice and light despite the egg and syrup content. One boo-boo though: I forgot French toast has cinnamon (and I HATE CINNAMON!!!). If you're wondering how I could have forgotten, it's because I make mine without one and anyone else who makes one for me doesn't put any. I found out about the cinnamon thing when the lady beside me ordered French toast too and saw the familiar sprinklings. ugh. Thank goodness there wasn't that much. It looks like they were rationing the cinnamon.

Back to the French toast... like I said, it was very light, enough to tide me over until lunch. I certainly wouldn't recommend it if you're deathly hungry. If you happen to find yourself in KFC with a grumbling stomach, you could have your fill on their other breakfast meals (hey, did you guys know there's a FULLY LOADED BREAKFAST MEAL? Yippeeeeee). But if you want a light breakfast (read: laman-tiyan), then by all means go with the French toast meal. Don't expect anything fancy either. Nothing beats homemade breakfast. But like I said, I was hungry.

Jollibee's New Stuff: The Good and Bad of It

2008-07-23T08:06:00.003+08:00

Everybody loves Jollibee – I know I do – and I do become overjoyed whenever they introduce new items on their menu. People are always bound to think that they would be good and inexpensive. Last week I caught an advertisement for Jollibee's La Paz Batchoy Style Noodles and immediately got curious. This was one of the items my friends and I have been joking about for years (like Jollibee Sinigang or Jollibee Adobo). And now there it was. Automatically, it was put on the Basta Food must-try list.

I was also happy to find out that the much-beloved Tuna Pie has made a comeback and what do you know, in a much larger size! I think it's the perfect size for a small meal... but more on that later. So in the name of journalism (sort of) and my hungry stomach, I had these two newbies for lunch yesterday. Pardon the lack of actual pictures (obviously, I took the above photos from the website). I really should have my camera on my person always.

I thought it was a bit odd for Jollibee to call it La Paz Batchoy STYLE noodles. Perhaps it was out of respect to the people of La Paz in Iloilo and to stress that it was a fastfood version of the much-beloved noodle dish.

The insertion of that one word should have been enough to clue me in on how that dish would taste, but I put too much faith in Jollibee being able to come up with a fastfood version that would make people happy. Unfortunately, Jollibee failed. :-( To tell it as candidly as I could, I honestly think that Lucky Me La Paz Batchoy tastes better than the tasteless, watery soup Jollibee has offered. It was really disappointing. I really hope it's just a mistake on the branch's part, but I think these things should have controlled recipes and methods so they would taste the same any branch I order it. But it was so bland and tasteless, and the noodles were quite limp that I wouldn't buy it again. For batchoy cravings, I'd depend on Lucky Me, or perhaps go to a Ted's outlet if I see one.

The full-sized tuna pie, on the other hand, saved my lunch hour. It had been a favorite of mine in my student days but I have always thought that it was too bitin. I'm really glad they decided to make their pies full size again (is it just the tuna pie or they started making full-size pies again? I want to get a full-size peach mango pie hehehe). It was cheesy and creamy and tasted just right. It wasn't fishy but it still distinctly tasted like tuna. And of course, the pie crust takes the gold medal for being the best ever. If ever Jollibee sold just the crusts alone, I would certainly line up for it. Half the pleasure of eating their pies is biting into the flaky crust. I think I'd buy one again this week.

Capricciosa Ristorante Italiano - Greenbelt

2008-07-11T09:31:00.008+08:00

Honest to God, I haven't even heard of this restaurant before. I just happen to come across it while looking for a new place to eat in Greenbelt. Since it was a sorta special occasion, and the boy and I were profoundly hungry, we decided to try this out.

With a little more research as I began writing this, I found out that Capricciosa is actually a Japanese chain of restaurants serving Italian food. A novel concept, I suppose, but hey, we have Italian restaurants run by Filipinos here. So how could that be any different. But still, it veers on the weird side of things, knowing that Japanese people love the simplest of food, those without much adornment.

Entering Capricciosa, you are immediately in full view of the kitchen where you can actually see your food being prepared. The interiors were quite homey, a resto quality which always makes me want to take off my shoes and eat heartily. And so we did:

We started off with a regular thin crust Marinara Pizza (P481.60 -- *gulp* special occasion, remember?). Upon seeing it I thought it was a tad too small for 2 people to share, but after just 2 slices we felt like we were filled. And that's because this pizza is packed with shrimp and squid -- REAL shrimp and squid -- not to mention the cheese and the tomato sauce and the divine crust. It's filling but not nakakasuya. Admittedly, the prices in Capricciosa are on the steep side, but hey, we don't eat there everyday (that's where the ever-reliable Jollijeeps come in).

Next up, we had an order of spaghetti carbonara (P364.00). There was a decent list of pasta dishes there, but we wanted something homey (to go with the ambiance of the place). The serving in this picture looks small, but trust me, it's a deep plate, and we weren't even able to finish this (good thing -- it was our baon the next day). And can I just say, this is the best carbonara I've ever tasted (sorry Mom and Dad). Delectable, to say the least. We loved it so much that we asked our waiter who made it. Capricciosa gets 5 stars just for serving carbonara like that.

Originally those were the only things we ordered, but seeing the images of dessert on their TV screen made me want to order dessert. I haven't had pumpkin pie (P196.00)in my life and I just wanted to try it so we ordered it. I don't have any idea how pumpkin would taste as a dessert, though it is is one of my favorite veggies. I'm glad I ordered it because it was simple heaven. The thick whipped cream on top rested on a creamy and sweet (but not overwhelmingly so) pumpkin filling, all supported by a delicious pie crust. The taste reminded me of coconut jam, honestly. I'm sure Pinoys will love it. I want to make one myself!

That's how you eat pumpkin pie.

.....

Capricciosa Ristorante Italiano is located at 3/F Greenbelt 3, Makati City.

Capricciosa

2008-07-10T17:38:00.002+08:00

What's in Capricciosa?

Find out tomorrow. :-)

Dong Bei Dumpling

2008-07-07T09:40:00.000+08:00

I am fortunate that I live near Binondo that I can go there whenever I want to walk around their busy streets or eat something new. Last Saturday was a hungry day for me so I decided to have a food trip in Binondo. I walked at the back of Binondo Church and saw this hole in the wall restaurant.

I ordered Handiwork Beef Noodle and 10 pcs of Chives Dumpling.

Their beef noodles costs Php 100. It is made of handmade noodles and the serving is full.

Dumpling costs Php 100 for 14 pcs and Php 80 for 8 pcs. There different dumplings to choose from like Chives, Celery, Cabbage, Pork, Shrimp and Vegetarian.

The ladies in action. They're making a lot of dumplings.

The yummy dumplings!

Dong Bei Dumpling is located along Yuchengco street in Binondo. The place only got 4 tables. The ambiance is super laid back and you can come in pambahay attire. Dong Bei Dumpling is worth the experience. Sulit!

Solving Boyfriend Woes at Pizza Hut Bistro

2008-07-02T09:50:00.008+08:00

Girlfriends and wives are very much familiar about this guy thing. You know how they suddenly get cranky and silent. Yes, girls, it means your boy's mighty hungry.

This happened to me recently, and while boys usually have a set idea about what to eat and where, on that particular instance the boy and I were facing a deadlock. We were literally walking around Glorietta, trying to find out what food he wants to scarf that particular time.

Walking led us to Pizza Hut Bistro, a place where we had been to once and were quite happy with. Plus, it served the boy's all-time favorite food: Pizza.

Pizza Hut Bistro is a twist on the all-too-familiar Pizza Hut chain of restaurants. This is not the Pizza Hut restaurant you're used to. Try injecting a bit of class and poshness into Pizza Hut and this is what you get. Their menu also showcases dishes that you won't really think about when the name Pizza Hut comes up, like pasta and salad dishes. It also does not look like your usual pizza joint, what with wine bottles on tables and poinsettia centerpieces. Should you find regular Pizza Hut outlets a tad too juvenile, you may want to pay a visit to the Bistro.

The great thing about boys being hungry is that they are willing to pay for loads of food and will say yes to anything you order just so you two could start eating soon. I must say I love these times! Hahahah!

Upon placing our orders, we were given bread sticks which reminded me of pizza crusts. I love anything crunchy, but honestly they weren't anything special. Well, they're bread sticks for crying out loud. And since there were only four bread sticks to go around, having a taste of these no matter how simple, only made us hungrier. But at least it sort of prepped us for what was to come.

The boy and I ordered garlic shrimp and mushroom pasta (P175.00) merely on the strength of how appetizing the picture looks. The serving was big enough to share and we weren't disappointed by the taste. The shrimps were plump and there were enough mushrooms between the two of us. Honestly it reminded me a bit of Charlie Chan pasta, but with seafood. The bread that came with the pasta was a downer, however, because it was hard and (at least I thought so) old. But overall, we loved this dish and we'll order it again the next time we swing by Pizza Hut Bistro.

Next on the our agenda was pizza. Ever since Pizza Hut introduced Cheesy Pops, I have been enamored by it and wouldn't have my pizza any other way. Maybe it's the cheeses used or the fact that it's like getting two dishes in one, I don't really know. For this visit we got a regular cheesy pop bacon cheeseburger pizza (P370.00). I actually wanted to try the vegetarian one, but since he's paying for dinner and was the hungrier one between us, he should get whatever the hell pizza he wants! :-) That being said, we only managed to finish half of it. Not that it wasn't great. For some reason, after the pasta and spaghetti we were full. But of course, there's always room for dessert!

Pizza Hut Bistro has a number of desserts that would appeal to anyone and great for capping off a great meal such as the one we had. For dessert, we ordered a banana caramel sundae (P145.00), a delectable concoction of vanilla ice cream, banana slices, banana cake squares, and a sprinkling of toasted almonds. We were expecting a small ice cream dish and a small scoop of ice cream but NOOOOOOO. I think three or four people could easily share this and be quite happy with it. It was really satisfying because I didn't feel like they skimped on ingredients. Actually with everything we ate, we were satisfied.

Pizza Hut Bistro, you could say, is a grown-up version of its more masa cousin, but without being too intimidating. Clearly worth a try, especially if you're a fan of Pizza Hut. And what about those boyfriend hunger woes? Gone by the time he scarfed down the pasta.

Pinsec House

2008-06-30T08:58:00.001+08:00

I will share you one of my dirty secret. It is the PINSEC House located in the busy street of Claro M. Recto near Rizal Avenue also known as Avenida.I call it dirty because you will be hesitant at first to eat in this place. It is somewhat unpleasant due to its location and setting but the taste is heaven (at least for me). As far as I know, they were already serving delicious mami & siopao even before I became human. My parents introduced this addiction to me when I was kid. They always brought mami and siopao as pasalubong. Guess what? My dad used to date my mom in this place. How sweet! Another guess what? I also did it with my ex-girlfriend. Ha! Ha! Ha! My ex-girlfriend loves this place so much that we were always there to eat once a week, she lives in Paranaque. Dinadayo pa talaga nya.

I was at Roan last Saturday to buy an AVR for my speakers and some concert DVDS. It was a good 5 minute walk from Roan to Recto so I decided to drop by at Pines for some monthly dose of good food. I ordered large beef mami because 5 pesos lang ang difference compare to regular mami plus regular siopao since I am not really hungry. Their large siopao is really big; imagine the size of a Php 45 large siopao compare to a Php 25 regular siopao.

Large Beef Mami costs Php 59.00 and Regular Siopao for Php 25.00

Hungry? Pinsec is the place to be.

My brother got this theory that their siopao is made of cat because there are a lot of cats that roam around the area. Ha! Ha! Ha! I highly recommend this mami house for those who want to try delicious mami & siopao (but i love the siopao of kowloon more). The service is fast and the food is good. Try it!

Taho: The Breakfast of Champions

2008-06-26T10:25:00.007+08:00

Granted that it looks like cat vomit with little bubbles floating around, it certainly doesn't look appetizing. But the humble taho is something that I sorely miss whenever I notice that I have gone a long time without having a cup of it.

And when I do have it, I keep thinking that I should enjoy it while I'm young, lest I want to suffer the consequences of consuming too much soy products in old age (read: arthritis and joint pain galore!). Well, good luck to me then. I happen to love tofu and its cousins, and I love the energy that it can give my usually sleepy morning self. All that protein and carbohydrates is sure to keep me going -- and at only P10 a pop.

Who among us hasn't consumed this somewhat gelatinous seeming mass of arnibal, sago, and soy product. It's part of our childhood, all of us. The mighty taho call is something that's burned into our consciousness and would most likely bring about memories of childhood, good or bad. Early mornings were spent awaiting Manong Magtataho. Gotta love childhood.

When I used to work the night shift in Makati, I would get a taho every so often and be surprised that the Makati taho are a bit shushal. Some of the taho i bought featured cup covers for when you would opt for "takeout," and some featured straws. Yes, straws for slurping the goo. This particular taho pictured here came with its own plastic spoon. Truly Makati-style.

As I have an affection for sago, I like mine with lots of it, with just the right amount of arnibal, not too sweet. It doesn't matter if it's hot or cold -- I like them both. I do eat mine with a spoon, however. Is that a tad weird? And when I buy taho at home (if and when I wake up early enough to catch the Saturday taho man), I take out my higante soup mug-cum-bowl and ask for the taho to be served there. Big breakfast indeed!

How do you like yours?

Yakult

2008-06-09T22:47:00.007+08:00

When I was a kid back then, I always wait for this lady dressed in blue uniform to passed by our house. Yeah! The Yakult lady dragging her stroller.

There is something in this drink that will keep you from drinking and drinking and drinking it all over again. The TASTE! It is unique that you really can't distinguished if it is a milk or what? basta Addicting! hahaha!

I always wonder why didn't they thought of packaging it in a bigger servings like 1.5 liters or a gallon. Then how much it will cost then? I don't care if it is expensive, I am willing to pay for a 1.5 liters of Yakult.

According to Yakult website, It is from skimmed milk powder, sugar, water and our live probiotic strain of good bacteria called Lactobacillus casei Shirota. Yeah! You read it right. We are drinking a bacteria. Yummy isn't?

Ooops! Don't you know that it is bad to drink Yakult more than it's suggested serving. Even it is made of good bacteria, It is still bacteria we are drinking. One bottle per day is good enough for our digestion.

I hope Yakult can release a different variations like Yakult Zero, Yakult Light, Yakult Strong Ice or Yakult Super Dry. Hahaha!

For me, this is one of best drink ever invented. Okay ka ba tiyan?

Baileys for Pretendos

2008-06-09T17:54:00.004+08:00

Hi there! This is P, one of the 3 faces of Basta Food. Well pardon me if I write this way. Call me Mr. Informal because thats what I am. I write it as soon as it pops my head. This way I dont forget what im saying. Im here to share a good drink. As the Title says Baileys for Pretendos. Well, we all know the cost of Baileys right? (Dont ask me, I dont know the "exact" cost, but all I know is it can burn a hole in your pocket). So since we cant afford to buy that creamy drink but want to have at least that taste in your underground party especially for the not hard core drinkers, here is a recipe i read somewhere in this vast cyber space (a.k.a. internet).

ITS CALLED ... GAGENKA (GAtas GEneroso KApe)

ingredients

1 can medium size condensed milk
2 spoons of plain coffee
1 bottle of generoso
pitcher
ice... lots of it

This is the fun part. Mixing the ingredients. Now, personally i did not measure how many of this, how many of that. Of course im not a bartender who can whip up wild drinks with precision. And besides its a party, we should be enjoying and not thinking too much bout it. After all we'll all get drunk anyway. One way or another.

Now, as I said earlier this is just an approximation of everything (talk about pharmaceutical background). The key here is taste it. So you will know if the sweetness jived with the alcohol. You can adjust the measurement of the ingredients as you please. Ill just jot down the basic steps.

1) In a pitcher dissolve 2 tablespoons of coffee with a bit of Generoso. I said a bit. Why, so you could easily adjust the strength of alcohol in the drink later.

2) Pour in the condensed milk.

3) Add in some ice.

4) Now lastly, pour the generoso in the pitcher. How much, well its up to you. Just make sure that the bitterness of coffee, sweet taste of milk, and sting of alcohol all jive well. Dont add water. You already have ice in there, it will melt after all. Taste it. If it suits you, then we are all set.

Enjoy!!

Why You Really Shouldn't Trust Food Advertising

2008-06-04T15:47:00.001+08:00

Being bored at work is something that I always succumb to, and thankfully I have limitless internet to keep me preoccupied while I contemplate on what to do next.

I found this on one of the sites I frequently go to when I'm deathly bored. It was something about food and so I clicked on it. Very interesting, I must say.

We all fall victim to food advertising, what with their mouthwatering photos and all that, particularly with fast food where they showcase burgers in all their juicy glory. Despite knowing that food stylists are involved with food ads, and many hours are spent perfecting the look of the food, we still fall prey to its charms. What looks mouthwatering in the package disappoints us in real life. A few samples from the link:

Strangely unappetizing they look in real life. Check out the rest at the LINK.

Defeated by Sbarro

2008-06-03T16:28:00.000+08:00

Before Glorietta 2 was bombed (or was it, really?), the boyfriend and I used to frequent the Sbarro branch there. Never mind that we had to wait in line to order and wait in line to be seated. Those were the days when we conquered pizza-dom and scarfed down these cheesy, tomato-ey babies. But those days are gone.

Recently, he and I were walking in Megamall and saw the Sbarro signage. After eyeing each other and assessing our hunger (VERY hungry), we decided to dine there and proceeded to order long-missed dishes such as:

The Chicago Supreme Deep Dish Pizza (P159.00)

The Chicago White Deep Dish Pizza (P159.00)

and

Eggplant Parmigiana -- feeling healthy (P74.00)

Granted that we are supposed to be voracious, pizza-inhaling people who can literally finish this feast in under an hour, I am sad to report that we didn't even finish all of it. The Eggplant Parmigiana was the only thing we were able to finish, but only with great effort. Gone are the days when a deep dish pizza was nothing to us (hence we had to have the pasta as well, and sometimes dessert too) even if we weren't that hungry. But for this instance, despite walking from the MRT to Megamall to Tektite and back to Megamall again and not having anything since lunch, we were supposed to be famished. And we thought we were, that's why we ordered that much.

So for that instance, Sbarro defeated us. I wonder when we can defeat Sbarro again. Round 2, I believe, is in the works.

HAMBREAD: A Different Take on the Ham & Cheese Sandwich

2008-05-27T05:03:00.000+08:00

Having been to 2 outings where I've been in charge of the "travel food," food that keeps the boys and girls nourished while cooped up in a van for hours, I have chosen to make something that's easy to eat with one hand but wouldn't really fill them up to the point that they'd throw up. Just some simple laman-tiyan.

Hambread is something I learned from my old office, where the IT guy would bring these goodies whenever there was a birthday or party. The first time I had these gobblers, I had about 12. It's quite mind-boggling for something so simple. It's actually like a ham and cheese sandwich, but made to look different and a bit more complicated. Honestly, the appearance made it more delicious as well.

Hambread is not only great for outings, it works as a great school baon as well. Schooldays are about to start, and I bet the poor moms are panicking as to what to feed their children. Fret not, Mom. Let's just rework the classic ham & cheese sandwich:

To make a ton of hambread:

1 loaf wheat bread (let's live healthier and put a bit more fiber into our diet!!!)
1 package cheese slices (if you're feeling sosyal, you can put any cheese you want. mozzarella would be crazylicious with this)
1 package cooked sweet ham (again, you can substitute with more sosy fare... if you want to)
lite mayonnaise (or mayonnaise... see, this recipe is flexible hehehe)
olive oil or cooking spray (by the way, you can also bake or toast this if you don't want to fry it)

And here we go:

1) Get a slice of bread and lay it flat on a chopping board or plate. Then using whatever kitchen implement you have (better if you have a rolling pin, but I have used a wine bottle and a water glass on the two occasions that I have done this) and flatten the bread to about 1/4-inch thickness. You have to get it pretty thin so you can roll it later easier.
2) When your bread is thin enough, spread a little mayo on the bread, take a slice of cooked ham and layer it on there, and then add the cheese. Now let's get rolling. Rolling the hambread is pretty simple. It's actually quite similar to rolling a sushi roll. Take one end of the bread and start rolling a tight roll. Keep rolling until the end and if you did a great job, it should hold its shape. If not, don't feel too bad. Take a toothpick and stab it into the rolled bread to hold it in place. Do it with the rest of the bread in the loaf. You should have rolls similar to this:
3) You may notice that the bread rolls in the picture are quite golden brown. Well, that's because after finishing with rolling the breads to oblivion, we will now fry the bread (or bake it or toast it, whichever method you prefer. But for both times, I fried them). Drizzle olive oil to your hot skillet or frying pan and then place your bread rolls around 3 at a time. This is going to be fast since you only want to turn them golden brown and maybe melt the cheese a little. Turn them about every 20 seconds or so, making sure that all sides are even and golden.
4) Now's the time to cut the bread. Take a bread knife and cut the rolls into thirds. It's your call if you want to cut them diagonally or want to spell your name on the bread sides, but 3 even pieces per slice of bread seems ideal. Voila! Hambread!

I dare you to eat just one. :-)

This is great for school, for outings, for snacks, name it! You can even make it more upscale by scouring for more sosy ingredients. Healthier options can also be had by substituting ingredients. TRY IT.